I had to look that up, but it seems like it would be really useful here. I think I'll try this when I do my flower beds next year.Yes I would agree, rain makes everything much happier than hose water. Probably because rain water has less chemicals; in theory anyway.
We have clay, some sand over clay. Either way, under most of it is a layer of caliche, basically cement but it’s made from calcium I think. It’s almost impossible to break through if it’s a thick layer. I don’t till my soil, it’s actually not good for the soil structure, but instead have been improving it with organic materials.
At this point we’re going to make SIP beds for the veg garden. Basically raised beds that have a water reservoir underneath and the soil sips the water as needed. They are good for my environment as they don’t let water evaporate as much as watering from above does.